Liquid Laughs 2 at Big Blue
The air conditioning surrendered but comedy won the day
Surprising absolutely nobody, the Texas heat tried to spoil the fun at Liquid Laughs 2, but you know the expression — the show must go on. When the air conditioning went out in “The Venue,” Mitch Burrow and his crew simply moved it into the Big Blue lobby next door and got down to business.
There were a number of scheduling difficulties due to cancellations by the headliners, once when the event was in the early planning stages, then again just days before the event. As a result, they rearranged the lineup and Mitch Burrow went on first to warm up the crowd with a set of stuff I hadn’t heard and some favorites, too.
Accounting for the fact that a ticket to Liquid Laughs gets you free drinks, things started to get loose quickly. There also may have been some onstage shotgunning of beers.
The rearranged lineup proved to be entertaining and included some names I hadn’t previously heard, like Destiny LaLane, a fearless young comic who didn’t flinch when her gluten-free joke landed with a thud. Destiny struck me as a budding comic who’ll find success because, not only is she funny, she doesn’t show fear and isn’t deterred by the stuff that doesn’t work.
Wichita Falls local favorite Brent Maples was the second comic on the bill and brought exactly what he’s known for — pull no punches Texas humor.
I’d really like to tell you more about my favorite Brent Maples bit, but I cannot put it down in print. Suffice to say, I would end up in jail. If you were at the show, you know.
The next comic was featured performer Cristina Mariani who is going to be on a quick upward trajectory if her Liquid Laughs performance is any indication.
Cristina’s comedy is smart but underplayed for comedic effect… she has a mousy affect that reminds me of the delivery of Maria Bamford, but also a quirkiness that could be compared to Ellen Degeneres in her standup days, even Judy Tenuta.
The crowd enjoyed Cristina Mariani a lot, and let her hear it. She deserved the applause, too. Cristina really got things rollin’.
Fans of bold, abrasive, no apologies comedy got a treat in the set of Leonarda Jonie, another fast-rising comedian who roadtripped to the show from the Austin comedy circuit with Cristina Mariani.
Leonarda comes straight out of the Lisa Lampanelli school of comedy and she’s the kind of comic who makes me afraid if I’m sitting down in front.
Please don’t pick on me.
Leonarda was fantastic and the perfect act to segue into the headliner.
Tre Stewart, a working comedian from Detroit who has been seen on Netflix stepped-in with little notice to headline Liquid Laughs 2 and crushed.
Tre’s comedy set ranged from his observations on relationships and sex (with cougars, which Tre classifies as age seventy and above) to crowd interaction, and he is a polished professional. It took grudging fits and starts to get Liquid Laughs 2 rolling, but Tre Stewart made sure it finished just as it should — with laughter.
There were the usual raffle drawings and after show festivities, and I saw a few revelers head over to the El Norteno on Wheels taco truck as they exited the venue on a beautiful night downtown.
Challenges aside, I still can’t think of a much better way to spend an evening than with laughter and good company.
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All photos by the author, © FallstownFUSE.com
